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Poll: PA Arabs prefer stabbing attacks to peace talks

Most Palestinian Authority residents support stabbing attacks against Jews, according to a poll released on Monday.

The poll, conducted by the Palestinian Center for Policy and Survey by Khalil Shikaki, reveals strong support for the Hamas terror organization among PA Arabs, and little support for peace talks.

According to the poll, 58% of Arabs in Judea, Samaria, and Gaza support the ongoing wave of stabbing attacks on Israeli Jews. That’s a nine point drop in three months, notes Shikaki, who remarked that the attacks are “widely viewed as ineffective”, AP reported.

The vast majority of Palestinian Authority residents – some two thirds – believed that a new intifada would be more desirable than peace talks with Israel.

If new elections were held for the Palestinian Authority, Hamas would beat incumbent Mahmoud Abbas by 11 points. Abbas last stood for election in 2005.

Arch-terrorist Marwan Barghouti, who is serving five life sentences in Israel for his role in a wave of deadly terror attacks in Israel, also performed well in the poll, beating Abbas by 18 points in a theoretical match-up.